Mourinho allegedly cried when he discovered Moyes got the United job ahead of him, and for that snub alone it is arguable United should crawl down to west London and apologetically plead for his forgiveness. Ferguson made a colossal error in overlooking the Portuguese, who has not looked like the happy one he claimed he was when he returned to Chelsea last summer.

Jürgen Klopp

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United supporters' favourite. Klopp signed a new contract with Borussia Dortmund until 2018 last year, but the club have experienced a chastening hangover from reaching the Champions League final and will lose Robert Lewandowski to Bayern in the summer. They could yet win the DFB-Pokal Cup, but Klopp might finally be tempted away from the Westfalenstadion.

Antonio Conte

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Conte will clinch a third successive Scudetto with Juventus this year, as the Italians' dominance in Italy mirrors their 90s hegemony. A young coach at 44, Conte has presided over Juve's rise from the Calciopoli match-fixing scandal in 2006 and built an athletic and powerful side that has, however, come unstuck in the Champions League.

Louis van Gaal

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Van Gaal would say 'yes' to United in a heartbeat. He will step down as Holland coach after the World Cup finals and is eager to finally manage in England. His aura has long since diminished since his 90s heyday, when he won the Champions League with Ajax and managed Barcelona to two Primera Liga titles, though.
If he won't be at United, he will almost certainly be at Tottenham next season.

Carlo Ancelotti

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An outsider who is unlikely to get the bullet at Real Madrid after one season that has already yielded the Copa del Rey, Ancelotti has won titles in Italy, England and France already. He has been around for ages but is only 54.

Diego Simeone

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It is hard to think of a club that has risen as stratospherically as Atlético Madrid have under Simeone in the last three years. Since taking over at the Vicente Calderón in 2011, Simeone has won the Europa League, the European Super Cup and the Copa del Rey, Atlético Madrid are four games away from a first title in 18 years and will play their first European semi-final in 40 years on Tuesday. He could bow out on an incredible high. He is also a tireless motivator - the polar opposite of Moyes.